10.13.07
“Religion is not science”
There’s a rather strange claim that is running around the world these days. It’s one that really doesn’t make sense to me, and I can think of only one real reason for someone using it. The claim is basically that science is separate from and does not include the supernatural (more often it is stated in the form of “religion is not science”, but the form I presented is more accurate to the intent). It’s just so very strange that a person could say such a thing. Let me explain.
Science is supposed to be our knowledge of reality, right? It is from the Latin scientia, meaning “knowledge”. It is our understanding of what our world is and how our world works. So, quite simply, if there is a supernatural aspect to the world, then the supernatural should be a part of scientific study.
The above proposal is considered absurd by a sizable number of people. The basic reason behind this is that they do not believe in the supernatural, or they do not want to acknowledge its existence. This sentiment is also the root of the claim that religion is not science. Taking the statement literally, it means that there is no supernatural. Of course, not everyone who uses the claim “religion is not science” believes that there is no supernatural, since many who use it do not really understand its literal meaning. The more naïve lot tend to believe that science and religion just occupy different planes of existence. But is this valid?
Let’s go back to the reason behind the claim. It is a claim of commitment to materialism, the belief that there is nothing beyond the physical realm. One thing really needs to be made clear: This belief is a starting premise. It cannot be reached through empirical evidence, as proving this claim necessitates absolute knowledge that there is no supernatural anywhere, and that no supernatural force has every interacted with the physical realm. Even one instance in which the supernatural has interacted with the physical realm would completely invalidate the premise. However, it is upon this premise that today’s materialistic science bases all of its thinking, and this is a big part of why scientists have such a hard time accepting the supernatural fairly into their study. Doing so would put so many sacred calves in jeopardy, especially the concept of Darwinism. Contrary to what some would say, however, it would not jeopardize such things as the laws of gravity and thermodynamics, since these laws were accepted under a scientific frame of mind that there was a supernatural.
Yet has there been any instance of supernatural interaction that would invalidate the premise? Actually, there is such evidence, both direct and implied. The implied includes irreducible complexity of life and the exquisite design found in all areas of nature. The direct includes eyewitness accounts in which individuals as well as masses of people witnessed divine acts and divine presence. There are eyewitness accounts that survive to this day that tell us of the beginning of the world, of a flood from the hand of God that covered the whole world, of a visitation of God a Mount Sinai, of the incarnation of God in the form of man at Bethlehem, and of the raising of the dead in the first century AD. Nonetheless, there are those who refuse to accept this evidence. As it is written:
First of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our fathers dies, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water. By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. (2 Peter 3:3-7)
The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, and their ways are vile; there is no one who does good. (Psalm 53:1)
